~ Maho Group also has strong presence ~
BRAZIL--“The current charter flights from Brazil are booked solid and we are confident about adding more,” Commissioner of Tourism Frans Richardson said on Tuesday, speaking from São Paulo, Brazil. He alluded to upcoming meetings with GOL Airline executives in an effort to secure a year-round bi-weekly flight from Brazil.
Richardson is in Brazil this week following up on tourism opportunities for St. Maarten. The visit comes in the wake of a visit made to the ABAV Tradeshow in Brazil last year. St. Maarten has been looking at its positioning strategy as it relates to the vital South American market, which has been labelled by market industry experts as the fastest-growing and most vibrant tourism market in the Western hemisphere.
Richardson’s week-long itinerary includes the launching of St. Maarten’s new branding strategy in Brazil. He said this had been very impressive for the Brazilians. He will also meet with Brazil’s largest tour operator CVC and have a series of other meetings, none more important than his meeting with officials of GOL Airlines on Thursday.
“We recognize how important this market can be for our tourism product. Securing of agreements with South American carriers, using Venezuela as a hub, is one of the areas of interest for St. Maarten, which remains interested in enhancing its efforts to meet objectives as a year-round tourism destination. We are eager, with the branding strategy and other factors, to showcase St. Maarten’s potential to South American airlines,” Richardson said.
GOL will be seeking assistance from St. Maarten in aggressively marketing the flight to ensure its success. When airlines start servicing an island, Richardson explained, they tend to want to feel secure that the destination will do its share towards the success of the service.
In that context, he expressed his thanks to the Sonesta Maho Group for being present at the event. “The Maho Group continues to show that it is a true partner with the Island Government. I was told their presence here in Brazil at this event is the first time in 12 years a hotel in a foreign destination has shown the level of interest that Maho does,” Richardson said.
As for the launching of St. Maarten’s new branding, Richardson said the Brazilians had expressed awe at the visuals of St. Maarten and the potential for business here. He said he personally had given a number of interviews to approximately 60 journalists, who will now feature St. Maarten in their respective publications throughout Brazil.
“There is a reason that so many destinations are looking towards South America and in particular Brazil. While many countries in the world were hard hit by the recession, Brazil is one of the few that weathered the recession. Since 2003 more than 20 million of the 198 million people in Brazil have risen above poverty and 32 million have entered the middle class,” Richardson said.
“They are a vibrant travelling market, which is a direct spin-off of their strong economy. They also view the Caribbean as a preferred destination, which is evident from the fact that our current charter flights with GOL are booked solid, in some cases overbooked. St. Maarten is taking into consideration that the competition in the region has increased significantly and that St. Maarten should step up its efforts to take advantage of the vibrant Brazilian travel market.”
Exceptional long-term growth is forecast for Brazil, which is expected to be the fifth largest economy in the world in five to 10 years.
